Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1887-11-06
SWINDLING AS A TRADE
The Rare Chances Offered 10 People
Out OF WOrk-Eminen AriisSs Whe
Paint Pictures at Two Cents
Apiece-The Sharks Who Give Out Art
work to DO Done at Home and
Find Plenty of Victims.

Some days sgo there appeared in the
advertising columns OF newspaper au
invitation to every person short OF
money. Work was offered which the ed
vertiseT assured his readers would prove
both pleasant and profitable, and could
be done by any one, young or old, weak
or strong, after little practice. had
the curiosity TO call at the address men
toned, not only to fad ont what the
work consisted OF, but to ascertain the
number OF persons out CT employment
and anxious to pick up stray penn les by
the first chance which Off red. [ know
that sometimes an sttrectlVely worded
advertisement Of this kind brings no less
than 10 0 answers TO newspaper office.
This, of course, would argue tremend-
Gus number Of unemployed parsons
watching eagerly their chance for work.
Upon climbing Eve stories OF a diDgy
building on one OF the streets back of the
Aston House, discovered q small room
where sat an old man, his wife, q son,
two daughters and four assistants, young
girls supp. sed TO be learning O. new and
beautiful art which might possibly lesd
them on to fame and fortune. The art in
question consisted in coloring some cheap
little Autographs with q sort OF opaque
water color wash laid on tbickly to imi-
tate oil. Done with any kind of skill the
effect is not bad. The stock consisted
of Christmas cards for the COM
ing season, and the proprietor
informed ne that such was the
tremendous demand for these works of
art that he found it possible to offer me
two cents for each card that would color
with care and good taste. The time
which would be necessary to do this de-
pended, he said, upon my skill and rapid
ity Of work. He knew one young man
who had actually succeeded in doing 100
cards in days work OF sixteen hours,
but he was wonder and had turned up
eventually as a rival of his teacher and
was now engaged in cutting down
prices with the manufacturers who
furnished the Autographs and paid for the
painting. OF course the work in itself
was really no more difficult than the
cofOriug which a bright child does with
his paints in picture book But il Was
certainly hard work and not printing.
and in two weeks from now advertise
ments in ali the papers and magazines Of
the land will offer "hand painted cards oY
real artists If nigh repute" at the ridicu-
/ lousy low price OF from 10 to % cents
each. The advertisement, Judging by the
| sample which / have seen, will go on to
! state that until now Europe has furnished
US with the works OF art, but that owing
/ 20 the enterprise Of the advertiser many
! of the EurC peal 8rtists who dlstin-
| guishcd themselves at this branch have
! oeen imported ana are now in his en-
pioy.
Inc "eminent artists looked up from
! time to time, as If they were accustomed
! 10 hearing themselves SO described with
! out going into convulsions, ard when the
nooa whistle sounded they drC pped their
! tools and rushed down TO The 0Gke shop
! below for mou!hful Of pie and glass
! of beer. IN the meGntime l questioned
! the proprietor Of the eS ablishment as TO
the opportunity Of making my salt should
! | decide 60 become an eminent artist. BE
/ said that be would teach me the art for
! So, to be repaid when l became expert
enough to be trusted with q genuine lith-
Cgraph. I told him that wgs much
! obliged for the opening and the ihforma-
ton, and would consider his offer should
nothing better turn up, and went sway
thsnkful to find thai this at last was not
wholly despicaole swindle intended to
get hard earned dollars from very poor
people.
For several years have been fond Of
writing TO the persons who advertise
periodically: ga Sure Fortune fol-
Everyone;" or "S77 a Week Guaran.
teed;" or again, 'sIf You Are in Debt and
Without Work, Write to Us and Fortune
Will be Yours" Or again: ga Good
Income Without Much Work and Nc
/ Canvasslng." Most of these concerns
hail from this precious city of New York,
and | am sorry to say that nctWlthstand-
/ ing the constant forts or our postCffice
and police departments, the profits from
! dupes seem to be such as to keep roguee
I st it from one end Of the year to the
other.
The Postcffice Department has been il:
strumental in SURPRISING an average OF
I2O such concerns every year since Mr.
| Pearson came into control, and before
him this Dumber was even larger. The
variety of devices was almost endless
some advertisements offered valuable
books and encyclopedias for almost
nothing; Others promised valuable pic
lures or other works of art as gift;
others proposed to maze the applicant
rich in short order by telling him secrets
beyond all price IN return for two cent
postage stamp. lAgGin, others had remedies
for consumption, paralysis, hydrophobia,
and pretty much every other disease
under the sun, which they would impart
to any one who chose to enclose 10 cents
to the advertiser, who gave up his time
ard his Information, not for the psltry 1C
cents, as he was careful to ssy, but for nis
love of humanity and his fellow sufferers
OF course, in this list there gre good
maDy cases of amusing roguery in which
tue sWindled gets almost the worth Of
his money as lesson. I remember that
four years ego the postof1ce authorities
stopped the letters Of man who was re-
ceiYing some $50 day from persons
who sent him quarter for what he ad
vertised as g fine steel engraving Of
Queen Vic oria ard got CENT CaDads
postage stamp in return. Also there
was the man who offered fol
half dollar sure method of killing
the potato bug and sent his clients
two little pieces OF wood with The
directions: "Place the bug between the
two pieces of wood aud sQueezs hard
bave no doubt that these out and gu
swindles Of d petty kind do no serious
harm and afford good lesson at small